


Ultimate Angel

by NervousAliceCurious



Category: Escape the Night (Web Series), Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Blood From Most Orifices, Curses, Dark Teastones, Dating Attempts Gone Wrong, Dating Sim/Advice, Dead Girl Walking, Deadly Projectiles, Devil's Advocate, F/M, Gen, Glitched Out, Hope VS. Obsession, Island Disaster, Meddling With Code, Radio, Re-boot, Saws, Semi-Blackmail, Supper In The Middle Of The Night, The Forces Of Evil Are Here And We Are Unfazed, Thunder and Lightning, Unlucky Number 12 references galore!!, Unwilling Servant, Wishes For Good/Evil, World Corruption, after the end, death trap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-26
Packaged: 2020-04-07 23:15:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 28
Words: 11,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19095007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NervousAliceCurious/pseuds/NervousAliceCurious
Summary: A series of islands connected by bridges. Hmm...Now where have we heard that before?Could it be, possibly...Super Dangan Ronpa 2?And what happens when the last inhabitant encounters the intrepid forces of the dark?





	1. Re:Upload

It powered up again…I think.

 

The island.

 

 

People are living in the hotel area.

 

Though it’s not like it was…

 

 

The virus did a lot of damage.

 

Twisted a lot of things.

 

 

But that’s not why I’m here.

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

 

Whenever a world is drastically changed like this it’s usually because someone, a Chosen one, most often, used their newfound 11th-hour powers to make it that way.

 

Like…take Kaname Madoka from the video game adaptation.

 

 

Like that.

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

I lost an eye…and my right leg is a lot weaker now.

 

It’s because the collapse…uh, the forced…shutdown…

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

It’s like falling asleep, only, when you wake up, it kind-of hurts.

 

There’s no colors and screaming though, not like it was for Monika.

 

Just black.

 

It left glitches in my program that are hard to see on the inside, but easier to see on the outside.

 

 

I think.

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

I can’t find my hairpin.

 

It must’ve washed away.

 

…

 

 

I’ll find it later.

 

…

 

I need to find Monomi.

 

…

 

 

 

Who’s that?


	2. Search Bar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Clowns have found a replacement.

“-She’s so cute!!

 

Can we keep her?”

 

 

“NO Sally, we cannot keep the emotionless doll-“

 

 

“But why!?”

 

 

She’s very short.

 

 

She likes to poke my cheeks when I puff them out.

 

 

“She’s like Little Orphan Annie-“

 

 

“FOR THE LAST TIME, **NOOO!!** ”

 

 

The leader of the Clowns is cosplaying as the Joker.

 

But not really.

 

 

“We’re supposed to be searching around here for the Master’s bride!

 

Not some pink-haired robot!!”

 

 

“But-“

 

 

“ **No** , buts!!!”

 

 

Her telescope is all tangled into knots.

 

Seems to work, though.

 

 

“He’s going to be here any second, and we NEED to have something to report to him!”

 

“…Can we report that we found a little cutie?”

 

 

“SALLY-“

 

 

“An _innocent_ little cutie?”

 

 

…

 

 

“I’m listening”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just had to. (X


	3. CPU Guide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the Devil.

He popped out of the sky like Superman.

 

A Superman with purple eyes.

 

 

Now he’s surrounded by a bunch of strange creatures from Hyperdimension Neptunia.

 

 

“…Who is this?”

 

“We don’t know boss, we just discovered her wandering around here…mumbling about some rabbit”.

 

 

“She’s super-innocent! Doesn’t she look it!?”

 

 

*Poke, poke*

 

 

I’m short, too.

 

 

He has to lean down.

 

 

 

“…Hmm…”

 

 

...

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

“Excuse me, sir…”

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

“Are you a friend of the Future Foundation?

 

Because I don’t know…if it’s supposed to be back up-“

 

 

“A long-a* pause for THAT!?”

 

 

“Shh!”

 

 

She gets kicked by that guy with all the marionette strings.

 

 

“…Future Foundation?”

 

 

Oh.

 

 

I guess he’s not.

 

 

 

“Are you a friend of Hajime’s?”

 

 

“…Who is ‘Hajime’?”

 

 

 

Never mind.

 

 

 

“Do you know where Mystic is?”

 

 

His hands are bigger than my shoulders.

 

They’re cold, too.

 

 

“No”.

 

 

I don’t even know who that is.

 

 

“-But _I_ do!”

 

 

It’s the Clown lady.

 

 

“She’s across the bay-on the central island that links the whole shebang together”.

 

 

“Can you lead us there?”

 

 

Me?

 

 

A tall redhead steps up next to him.

 

 

She looks like the Ultimate Maid that was supposed to enroll before the Tragedy.

 

 

“You think this mere waif will be able to do something so taxing?”

 

 

She sniffs.

 

 

“She looks as if she shall fall into slumber at any moment!”

 

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

I _am_ awfully tired…

 

I’ve been searching the Fifth Island all day long.

 

 

“Even so”.

 

 

Does he know?

 

Me, from somewhere…

 

 

“You’ll be a friendly face.

 

A benevolent influence, yes?”

 

 

I…think…so…?

 

 

“Maybe…I could be…”

 

 

“Excellent!”

 

 

He sighs with relief.

 

 

 

“If she sees you perhaps she won’t be so quick to run away from me”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun times ahead.


	4. Genre Savvy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nope.

“Who is ‘she’?”

 

 

“…Ah”.

 

 

He smiles apologetically…I think.

 

 

“Mystic, otherwise known as ETNMystic?”

 

 

He’s looking for a sign of recognition.

 

But I don’t have it.

 

 

“The AO3 author who brought me to life, freed me from my prison, and allowed me to enter this world?”

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

 

“I don’t know her”.

 

 

 

“Not that surprising, really…” A woman with a large staff says.

 

 

She reminds me of Arfoire.

 

 

“Yes, this child clearly hasn’t left this Magic Realm for many a year”.

 

 

He reminds me of Amamiya Ren, the Joker.

 

 

 

The man is confused for some reason.

 

 

 

“I can see that…well then”.

 

 

 

He extends a hand.

 

 

I take it…

 

 

 

“It is an honor to meet you Miss…”

 

 

“Nanami Chiaki”.

 

 

“-Nanami”.

 

 

Eldritch energy reminiscent of a Witch-King crackles around our handshake.

 

 

“I am the Cursed God”.

 

 

“A Cursed God?”

 

 

“Yes”.

 

 

“Does that make you an evil villain then?”

 

 

“An evil villain…”

 

 

He raises an eyebrow, amused.

 

 

“If you are here then no doubt, you must be an Ultimate.

 

What of?”

 

 

“I’m the Ultimate Gamer, sir”.

 

 

“Of course you are.

 

That’s why you say such things, and drop such references”.

 

 

“I guess so…

 

…

 

…

 

…

 

..

 

..

 

..

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

I’ve never thought much about it before.

 

I just do.

 

…

 

Are you evil, though?

 

Are you going to kill anyone?

 

 

Because killing is unforgivable…even if it’s for a good reason”.

 

 

“…I don’t plan on killing”.

 

 

“But you’re about to do other bad deeds too, right?”

 

 

“…”

 

 

The redhead brings forward a pocket watch.

 

 

“I can try hypnotizing her if you would like, my Lord”.

 

 

He holds up a hand.

 

 

“There’ll be no need for that”.

 

 

“You sure?”

 

 

It’s that cowboy from the Red Dead Redemption series.

 

 

“Kinda sounds like she’s not gonna do it otherwise…”

 

 

“Oh she will…”

 

 

He chuckles.

 

 

The creep factor goes through the roof.

 

 

“Because I happen to know where Monomi is”.

 

 

His half-smile is a bit chilling.

 

It’s not supposed to be, I don’t think…

 

 

But it is.

 

 

Or maybe that’s because I KNOW.

 

 

I **knew** he was bad.

 

 

 

“And I can easily bring you to her once my beloved is safely within my arms”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiaki havin' none of that!


	5. Prior Knowledge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Narrative structure is second-nature.

“Would you really do it?”

 

 

As the villain of a fantasy/cyberpunk game, he’s probably lying.

 

 

“I swear on the graves of my ancestors”.

 

“How can you have ancestors if you’re a God?”

 

 

 

Do you honestly believe that I am the only One?

 

 

 

I blink.

 

 

What does he mean…

 

 

 

“…I still won’t.

 

Because how do you know if she wants to see you?” I add quickly.

 

 

“She’s just afraid of her destiny”.

 

 

“What’s that?”

 

 

“To be my Queen of Eternity”.

 

 

“Does she not want the pressure?”

 

 

“That isn’t it”.

 

 

He shakes his head wistfully.

 

 

“She would normally jump at the chance to be more than a nameless ghost”.

 

 

 

…I have played a lot of games in my time.

 

1st-person shooters, RPG’s, platforms-

 

 

You name it, I’ve done it.

 

 

 

And won, too.

 

 

 

All except for dating sims.

 

 

 

“Then maybe you should give her some space”.

 

 

 

This conversation was shaping up to be a line of dialogue bubbles from such a VN.

 

 

 

“No one likes to be smothered".

 

 

 

I'll have to give it my best shot despite that.

 

 

 

"Besides, if she doesn’t want to be with you right now then it’d be wrong to press.

 

 

You might end up driving her further away”.

 

 

 

Than you already have.

 

 

 

“…Then what do you propose I do?”

 

 

 

His tone is curiously suspicious.

 

 

Time to use the Perjury mechanic…

 

 

 

“Instead of trying to get to her, why don’t you use some of that celestial power, and make her appear to you.

 

Don’t mention the ‘Queen’ thing at all, and just focus on having a nice time.

 

 

That ought to do it…”

 

 

“…I like the way you think”.

 

 

He turns to the redhead.

 

 

“May I?”

 

“Of course”.

 

 

She unhitches a black bag from a belt at her waist.

 

Withdrawing a single, smooth stone:

 

 

“All yours, my Lord-“

 

 

“Wait”.

 

 

I pluck it from her fingertips.

 

 

“-Excuse me!?”

 

 

“Let me do it.

 

That way, she can’t hate you for blocking off her friends”.

 

 

“How do you-“

 

 

“Know?”

 

 

The Cursed God is taken aback.

 

 

“I’ve been through many stories, so I'll always have a rough idea of what might happen at any given moment".

 

 

“Yes, I suppose you have”.

 

 

Cupping it tightly within both hands, I carefully whisper my wish.

 

Granted, I could be wrong, and it could be something else other than a blatant container of magic...

 

 

But I highly doubt it.

 

 

 

Dark clouds cover the sky and lightning flashes as soon as I finish speaking.

 

The little teapot crumbles into dust.

 

 

I bite my lip as the stray sparks burn my palms.

 

 

 

I guess I deserve it for my biggest lie ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you think she did?


	6. 100% Adoration Rating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now that that's settled, there's just one last thing...

A dark light blazes to life in the sky, arcing down over the entire island.

 

It flickers once, twice.

 

 

Thunder booms overhead.

 

 

Then it fades away into nothing.

 

 

 

At least, that’s what it seems like…

 

 

 

“What did you do?” the redhead wonders.

 

 

“I made a barrier that would keep out anyone we don’t want”.

 

 

Her eyes widen.

 

 

“Oh my”.

 

 

She’s impressed.

 

He’s impressed.

 

They all are.

 

 

The Cursed God beams.

 

 

“And to think I thought you women were of the delicate sex”.

 

 

“-Congratulations, celebrations, my Lord!”

 

Sally sweeps into view, slinging an arm around my shoulders again.

 

 

“You’ve finally gotten what you want!

 

Now…how’s about you let us have what WE want-this adorable little nugget here”.

 

 

Some clowns groan, others grin with their painted lips.

 

 

Trying not to laugh at her, I think.

 

 

“You’re obsessed”, the leader deadpans.

 

“But, she DOES seem like the innocent type”.

 

 

“Is she?”

 

 

“C’mon…just LOOK at her!

 

Look at that adorably sleepy eye, the moe bat hoodie-“

 

 

She flaps the ears.

 

 

“The kiddo’s a _bundle_ of cuteness just waiting to happen!!”

 

 

“Not to mention how out-of-it she sounds all the time…”

 

 

“That and…nobody’s gonna come take her away!

 

Nobody’s gonna interfere-“

 

 

Ouch.

 

That’s not nice…

 

 

“I sssee”.

 

 

A lady covered in scales brushes my bangs out of my face.

 

 

I don’t have anything to keep them out of the way anymore so that’s just what they do; flop into my eyes.

 

 

“In that cassse…we wouldn’t mind adopting her”.

 

 

She exchanges a glance with the 80’s version of Slenderman.

 

 

“Cute…little girl”.

 

 

“But I saw her first!”

 

 

Sally sticks out her bottom lip.

 

It’s as if Saionji-san were here in spirit.

 

 

“You had your chance with Orphan Annie.

 

And how well did that end again?”

 

 

“Ladies, please”.

 

 

-He got in the middle.

 

Which almost never goes well in any type of game.

 

 

“There will be enough time to figure out what to do with her when I have my Queen back at my side”.

 

 

The Snake Woman’s lips wrinkle, while Sally’s face crumples.

 

 

“For now-“

 

 

He snaps his fingers, and a scene from a Disney movie flutters to life in front of my eyes.

 

 

Pastel birds fly through the air, carrying ribbons, and ruffles, and whatnot.

 

A few striped cats heft a basket between them.

 

 

 

I think I can even see some deer roaming around.

 

 

 

I’m a little creeped-out…

 

 

Every time they tangle past my legs I feel how warm they are.

 

 

 

It’s too weird.

 

 

 

 

“Everything must be perfect for our moonlit dinner”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's no way this is over.


	7. Midnight Stroll Through CGI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chiaki meets a monster. Who's actually quite nice.

That night, as much as I want to sleep, I can’t.

 

The glitches are bothering me worse than usual.

 

 

It’s like I’m being stretched too thin-like my body might snap if I’m put under any more stress.

 

 

When I close my eyes, I literally feel as if I’m falling into an endless nothing.

 

 

 

So strange…

 

 

 

Maybe it’s a side effect of being alive when I should be deactivated.

 

 

Maybe.

 

 

 

Anyway, my stomach started to growl at 5 in the morning.

 

There’s no reason for it to want to eat right now, but…

 

 

I know that a ramen shop exists on Vendor Street; open at all hours of the night.

 

 

-

 

 

It’s a lot more dilapidated than I remember it being.

 

Half the roof has fallen in, and a sickly-sweet stench wafts from the shattered windows.

 

 

I doubt I’m going to find any food in here.

 

 

-Or anywhere, really.

 

 

All the other stalls have the same problem.

 

 

 

Yet, I’m pretty sure that there was a freezer in the back-

 

 

 

A woman descends on only a thin string.

 

Out of nowhere.

 

 

 

At least eight red eyes are looking at me.

 

 

Eight legs shiver into her ribs.

 

 

 

“Hello”.

 

 

“Hello…”

 

 

 

Her teeth shine bright-white in the dark.

 

 

I should probably be more afraid of her, but…

 

 

 

“And what brings you outside at a time like this?”

 

 

 

My stomach roars on cue.

 

 

 

“…

 

…I see”.

 

 

 

With a snap of her fingers, two women similarly dressed in lingerie materialize in the doorway.

 

 

 

“Haruko.

 

Kira”.

 

 

 

She gently takes my hand-

 

She’s like a punch-clock villain, maybe.

 

 

 

“Let us treat this little one to a feast she will never forget”.

 

 

-

 

 

“So.

 

Nanami-san, was it?”

 

 

“Yes…”

 

 

 

It feels kind-of surreal to be just walking down a hallway with a Japanese yokai straight out of Nioh.

 

 

 

“Is there a reason you are here all alone?”

 

 

 

Ah…

 

 

 

“I used to live with my classmates, until…something terrible happened.

 

 

The only good ending was to get them out-

 

 

 

But I wasn’t real like they were”.

 

 

 

I smile ruefully.

 

 

Just a bit…

 

 

 

“Monomi and I…we’re just a pair of AI’s.

 

We can’t ever leave”.

 

 

“Mm…”

 

 

She purses her lips.

 

 

“And they didn’t even try to save the two of you?”

 

 

“-No, I believe they will”.

 

 

She raises an eyebrow, doubtful.

 

But she doesn’t know them like I do.

 

 

“And even if they don’t, it’ll be fine.

 

Because as long as they remember what it was that they fought for then we’ll never truly be gone”.

 

 

“That being?”

 

 

 

“Hope for the future”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiaki is precious bean... X3


	8. Meddling Cheat Codes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New P.O.V time!!

The preparations have been completed.

 

The silken blankets have been set…

 

 

All that is left to do now is summon her via-

 

?

 

 

…

 

 

 

I can’t…get a reading…?

 

 

No matter how hard I concentrate-

 

 

 

“Lord, please!

 

You MUST stop this!!”

 

 

 

Lilith rushes to my side like the faithful servant she is, worry etched in the lines of her face.

 

 

 

“You’ll strain yourself if you keep this up-“

 

 

“I can do it”.

 

 

“But-“

 

 

“I’m **fine** ”.

 

 

 

My power crackles around my fingertips in violet sparks.

 

She should BE here by now.

 

 

The more I focus, the more a yawning ache threatens to overtake me from the very reaches of my mind-

 

 

 

“Why…why is…this…!?”

 

 

“My Lord-!!”

 

 

 

Blood gushes from my nostrils in torrents, and I nearly choke as it rises up the back of my throat.

 

 

 

It trails from the corners of my eyes like tears.

 

 

 

Staining the dewy grass, and welling up from under my nails.

 

 

 

 

The faint, golden barrier flickers and snaps overhead, restless.

 

 

 

 

 

I don’t understand why this is happening!

  

 

-

 

 

“Daddy, is it supposed to do this?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;


	9. Data Fit For A Queen (And Her Subjects)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A night time snack turns creepy.

I don’t know how they did it in ten minutes.

 

_Overcooked 2_ had nothing on them…!

 

 

All of the tables had been pushed together to create one large banquet platter.

 

 

Spread to the fullest with colorful vegetables and a lot (A **LOT** ) of meat.

 

 

 

Well naturally, because at least one is a Spider Woman.

 

 

 

“Tonight, it’s just us”.

 

 

She sits at the head, while her two…hand-maidens(?)…take up the sides.

 

 

There’s a plate for me, and a chair at the only spot left.

 

 

 

A vibe comes off of them that has my RPG senses on high alert!

 

 

Whenever the enemy starts going out of their way to be friendly, that’s always a bad sign.

 

 

Then again…

 

 

 

They think I’m on their side.

 

 

 

…I wonder if they treat all of their friends so nicely.

 

 

 

“I know your name, but you don’t know mine.

 

…Or do you?”

 

 

“Well…”

 

 

I sit down.

 

 

“…”

 

 

Jorogumo?

 

 

Maybe…

 

 

“That’s right”.

 

 

She’s surprised, though she covers it well.

 

 

“Are you well-versed in Japanese folklore?”

 

 

“Not really.

 

But a classmate of mine was interested in it.

 

She’d often share stories with us-well, actually it was more for the guy she liked”.

 

 

“She sounds like a woman worth knowing”.

 

 

“She was”.

 

 

And still is.

 

 

I pick up a piece of celery and eat it.

 

 

Its crunch is just as crisp as ever.

 

 

How is it that the food here is unaffected by the rot infesting everywhere else?

 

 

Haruko and Kira both create salads out of lettuce, tomatoes, and blueberries.

 

 

Jorogumo garnishes a bloody steak with rosemary.

 

 

They take turns pouring out a thick, burgundy liquid into their glasses.

 

 

They even pour some for me, too.

 

 

 

“To our good fortune”.

 

 

“To our everlasting health”.

 

 

 

Their Alpha leader bares her fangs.

 

 

 

“To Nanami Chiaki, the wonderfully brilliant woman who helped us bring about our forever kingdom when all else failed”.

 

 

 

They swish back the wine with more gusto than Akane versus a double-decker stacked buffet.

 

 

 

She laughs.

 

 

 

“Just goes to show only a female can do anything right”.

 

“Yes”.

 

“Of course”.

 

 

 

I stare at the way the liquid coagulates against the sides of the goblet.

 

 

I’m not hungry anymore…

 

 

 

That looks an awful lot like human blood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHHHH!!
> 
> Our little Gamer Girl got a cameo in OET I'm losing my mind-!!!!!!!!


	10. Enemy Awaken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Cursed God is not doing too great.

 

...

 

 

…What happened?”

 

 

I feel the sensation of feather pillows beneath me.

 

 

“Where am I?”

 

 

Hands wipe my forehead and face with cool cloths.

 

 

Blurred shapes surround me, and for a moment, a rouge bolt of fear skitters through my spine.

 

 

“My Lord…you’re awake”.

 

 

Lilith’s voice is relieved.

 

 

“I was so afraid when you collapsed-“

 

 

“Collapsed…”

 

 

“Yes”.

 

 

She shakes her head with regret.

 

 

“Your attempts to bring Mystic here with your mind…they failed.

 

-And they nearly killed you as well!”

 

 

Pink…or is that red…swims in my shaking vision.

 

 

Warmth down my upper lips…my cheeks.

 

 

Clucking her tongue, she and the rest of her attendants hurriedly pat over the streams.

 

 

“Why…Why is that so?”

 

 

I weakly clench my fists.

 

 

“The girl said…said that-“

 

 

“We know”.

 

 

There is a hard edge to her tone.

 

 

“Someone has already gone to…investigate”.

 

 

“G-“

 

 

I choke as a mixture of blood and phlegm rises from my barren throat.

 

 

 

Good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chiaki...CHIAKI...


	11. Run Out The Clock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dinner comes to a halt.

They giggle and pal around like three girls at a slumber party while they finish their food.

 

Sharing inside jokes that I’ll never understand…

 

 

I don’t mind.

 

 

If they’re not looking at me, the easier I can just…be here and gone.

 

 

My stomach growls, and they flash me a curious glance.

 

 

“Are you not going to eat?”

 

 

 

I just can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong.

 

 

 

Half-heartedly, I gnaw on a clump of carrot.

 

 

The curious glances don’t go away.

 

 

 

“…What’s the wine made of?”

 

 

 

I try to ask it innocently, but I dunno…

 

 

These women strike me as the type to miss nothing.

 

 

 

“The blood of men”.

 

 

…

 

 

So matter-of-factly…

 

 

…

 

 

I hawk down another bite of carrot.

 

 

“…They all thought they could steal from me”, she adds as justification when I don't say a word.

 

 

But that doesn’t make it okay.

 

 

-

 

 

The uneasiness that persists beyond that moment quietly drives me out of the room.

 

They’re laughing and exchanging jokes again, yet all the humor is gone.

 

 

Mumbling a quick goodbye/goodnight/thanks for the food, I scoop up a napkin-full of oddly-vivd leftovers and vanish through the shadowy doorway.

 

 

My first instinct is to go back to my room and figure out what’s up with this.

 

 

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

 

 

…I stop.

 

 

What time is it again?

 

 

By now…

 

 

 

 

It must be obvious what I have done.

 

 

 

I’d better see if I can warn them across the way before it’s too late.

 

 

Because now I’m a dead girl walking.

 

 

-

 

 

The plush factory has to have a radio-how else would Monokuma be able to direct his staff where to send the copies?

 

Silver shutters gleam like rusted teeth, warped, and twisted within their frames.

 

 

I grip the edges of the most prominent one, and shove-

 

Back-and-forth, over, and over-

 

 

I grit my teeth as they bite, opening long gashes in my palms and fingers.

 

Adding more scars to the faint burn-marks I’ve already got.

 

 

Eventually, I can rock it up(!) a couple of inches.

 

 

It’s a tiny gap, but I don’t have the time to make it any larger.

 

 

Lying down on my stomach, I shimmy inside.

 

 

-

 

 

Dark skeletons of machines at rest.

 

Bears riddled with frayed seams drown in slime, stuffing pouring out and all over the floor.

 

 

My shoes squish as I walk.

 

 

I may not have a flashlight, but the flickering emergency signs do just fine in guiding me right where I want to go.

 

I rush to the radio apparatus, and begin to set up the correct dials.

 

  My programming makes the process second-nature.

 

 

 Have to get in touch with the Future Foundation somehow…

 

 

 Static breaks through the speakers-not entirely unexpected.

 

 The domes I put over both islands would interfere with the signal.

 

 I fix the antenna on the off chance that someone may be on the other end.

 

 

 “Hello? Hello!”

 

 

Is anybody there?

 

 

“Don’t go to the fifth island!

 

The Cursed God is-“

 

 

 

**BANG**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trouble is coming.


	12. Smile Of The Harlequin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When your shadow finally reveals itself.

It punches through the fabric of my coat.

 

My skin.

 

 

Exits through my stomach, and makes a fair-sized dent in the broadcast.

 

Static spits, and then dies in a flurry of sparks.

 

 

I slowly fold to my knees, the dull ache an indicator of cold, hard shock.

 

 

“Ahahahahaha~!!”

 

 

The demented giggle-

 

 

Enoshima…Junko…?

 

 

 

“You wish~”

 

 

Arms wrap under my armpits, and lift me up.

 

Red ponytails swish to the sides of my face.

 

 

“But NOPE!

 

It’s just me~”

 

 

I hear a second rapport, and another punch through my diaphragm-

 

 

Spots of black, white, and gray scatter past my eyes.

 

 

 

I begin to glitch out, half the world disappearing in a blur of pixelated data.

 

 

 

For a bizarre instant, I think I can hear and see a masked Komaeda-kun screaming about the ‘death of Hope’ in French.

 

 

-

 

 

“There you are”.

 

 

A red-lipped smirk.

 

 

“We were wondering if you’d gone and abandoned us”.

 

 

Clicking.

 

 

“I suppose not”.

 

 

“Silly girl was tryin’ to call~”

 

 

“Was she now?”

 

 

Hand at my back-pushes.

 

 

I stumble forward, almost landing directly into Lilith’s grasp.

 

 

“Well, Miss Nanami, if you’d be so kind as to explain to us your conniving trick…”

 

 

 

We’re all ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Wish is coming back around.


	13. The Spanner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here it is: the moment you've all been waiting for.

I wish that an invisible barrier would be placed over the Fifth island, and the first…where the hotel is.

 

So that none of the Cursed God and his forces can get out, and Mystic cannot ever come in.

 

 

And that nothing can ever undo this charm-not even another stone for wishing.

 

 

Not even the magic of a fallen deity.

 

 

Nor can it ever affect those others who may have targets on them as well.

 

 

Nor can any other magic from any other magic users on the Fifth island.

 

 

Plus the definite traitor in the midst of Mystic and all of her friends should be blocked in both of these ways too…

 

 

 

Did I forget anything?

 

 

…

 

 

 

Is that enough?

 

Will that be enough?

 

 

 

 

I think it will.

 

 

 

_Lightning flashes, and burns sting the palms of my hands._

 

 

 

**A treacherous wish is born.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hypnosis can be quite cruel.


	14. The Fate Of All Traitors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The secret is out.

Red glares back at me as the images fade.

 

Her golden clock recedes from my view, and-

 

 

I just said all of that out loud.

 

 

 

My heart drops in my chest, but it’s alright.

 

It’s alright…

 

 

It is not alright.

 

 

“You…”

 

 

She’s so angry she can barely speak.

 

 

“You…you… _maverick_!!”

 

 

A gurgle of disbelief from somewhere behind her.

 

 

“And to think that we trusted you”.

 

 

She scoffs.

 

 

“Unbelievable”.

 

 

 

“Can I kill her? Can I kill her oh pretty please-“

 

 

Is that the girl who was…

 

Who shot…me…?

 

 

“As satisfying as that would be, Lucy dear, I’m afraid someone else has already laid claim”.

 

 

“Awww…”

 

 

Her disappointment is dangerous.

 

 

Even in this half-unconscious state, I can feel the undertones of a childish meltdown settling in.

 

 

…What would she do if she lost her cool?

 

 

“Who?”

 

 

“An old friend, or so I’ve been told…”

 

 

“Nana doesn’t have any friends here-not anymore!!”

 

 

…

 

…She was right, but it still hurt.

 

 

 

Why did it hurt?

 

 

“That’s not what I was told…”

 

 

From the smirk on her lips, I think I know who it is.

 

 

“Oh pooh.

 

Told by _who!?_ ”

 

 

Her arms clamp around me.

 

 

“By Miss Enoshima herself…”

 

 

She whispers in my ear.

 

 

 

…It was what I thought, but I still feel a chill.

 

 

 

I’m thrown back roughly, injuries still throbbing for attention.

 

 

 

A softer, gentler pair of arms catches me.

 

 

“Please.

 

 

Get her out of my sight”.

 

 

 

“With pleasure”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because a virus takes time to destroy.


	15. Final Boss March

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Final goodbyes.

“No fair!

 

I wanted to kill her~” 

 

 

Lucy’s whining cry follows me, follows us on our way out the door.

 

 

I don’t know where I’m being taken.

 

But I know for sure that I’m not coming back.

 

-

 

Long, sinewy limbs flop just outside my field of dying vision.

 

 

Are they…?

 

 

“Joro…gumo…?”

 

“Yes dear, it’s me”.

 

 

There’s a smile in her voice.

 

 

“I must say, I had no idea you had pulled off something of this magnitude”.

 

 

Murmurs of agreement from her two handmaidens.

 

 

 

…Did I call them handmaidens before?

 

 

My memory is starting to fall apart in blocks and pieces.

 

 

“Kudos to you…”

 

She is smiling.

 

 

“I suppose our Lord will never underestimate an individual of the female persuasion ever again”.

 

 

“Why…would he…?”

 

 

That’s the one thing I still can’t figure out.

 

 

If I were in his shoes…

 

I’d never let it end that way.

 

 

“Because he is a stupid lovestruck boy living millennia in the past”.

 

 

I almost choke on my own spit.

 

-

 

Air.

 

_Fresh_ air…

 

 

We're outside...

 

 

“…You don’t seem to be too fearful of your approaching end”, she remarks.

 

 

“I knew it would turn out this way”.

 

 

I trail off.

 

 

A bone-deep exhaustion is slowly taking over me.

 

…I don’t particularly _want_ to fall endlessly into the darkness behind my eyelids.

 

 

Though right now, my body might not listen.

 

 

 

My feet touch the cracked ground.

 

 

“Nanami-san…do you have any regrets?”

 

 

“I have two.

 

 

I wish I could've found Monomi...

 

And a number of my friends died here.

 

That would mean that they’re asleep in the real world”.

 

 

I sigh.

 

 

“If there was a way to wake them up, I could’ve told the survivors how to do it”.

 

 

I smile wryly.

 

 

“Why do you want to know?”

 

“…It was a pleasure to meet you”.

 

 

 

 

The three of them lightly push me through the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> She's almost here, guys.


	16. Final Level Transplant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She's back.

The metal frame collapses as soon as I stagger to a stop.

 

My blood freezes at the sight.

 

 

It’s a perfect replica of the trial room that ended the lives of four of my friends…and me as well.

 

 

Sitting right at the center of Monokuma’s self-proclaimed cushion is-

 

 

 

“Monomi…!?”

 

 

 

She doesn’t respond to my hopeful whisper.

 

 

I limp over as fast as I can!

 

 

“Monomi!

 

It’s me-“

 

 

It’s only after I gather her into my arms that I see it:

 

A sturdy spike driven into her skull.

 

 

The letter ‘C’, carved into its head.

 

 

“Mo…nomi…?”

 

 

Is…she…

 

 

I grasp the large tip, and begin to pull.

 

 

Forever goes by while I unscrew, and unscrew…

 

I don’t even register the pain anymore.

 

 

-Which makes me wonder how much time I have left before my programming gives out even more than it already has.

 

 

Finally, I rip it free!

 

 

Her eyes flutter open on cue.

 

“-!

 

Chiaki…?”

 

 

Stubby arms going to the crown of her head, Monomi groans.

 

 

“I don’t feel so good…”

 

“Neither do I”, I admit.

 

 

“But I’m glad to see that you haven’t been hurt too badly-“

 

 

“Somebody was in here!

 

A man, I think…

 

 

They told him to shut me up”.

 

 

“Shut you up?”

 

 

“They were worried I’d warn the Hotel People away!”

 

 

“Well, they’re all stuck here now…they won’t be able to hurt anyone ever again”.

 

 

“-They hurt _you!!_ ”

 

 

My little sister flares with rage.

 

 

“Yes, they did.

 

I’ll be the last one they ever touch”.

 

 

-

 

 

Just as I say it.

 

 

An eye opens up on the wall.

 

 

 

Big, and blue.

 

 

The lashes whip up and down before curling into a non-vocal sneer.

 

 

Air swirls around us, rustling my clothes, and making Monomi shiver.

 

Pink blood has begun to drain from the puncture wound, and the bright-red light of her left socket dims.

 

 

“I thought I got rid of her…”

 

 

I quickly reach out an arm to steady her as she involuntarily tilts.

 

 

Multi-colored strobes flash, and I catch glimpses of a bloody woman in a red-and-black school uniform.

 

 

 

Arcing across the ceiling.

 

 

 

One giant, gnarled hand lowers.

 

 

_Na-na-mi~_

 

 

 

“RUN!!”

 

 

Monomi tries to shove me toward the winking ‘exit’ sign in neon-green.

 

 

“I’ll self-destruct and slow her down-“

 

“No”.

 

 

I catch her flailing hand.

 

 

 

"I'm not leaving without you".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Monomi is cute~<3


	17. Ultimate Death Gauntlet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The execution nobody asked for, and nobody wanted.
> 
> WARNING-Blood, gore, bodily horror.

We clatter into the tunnel just as Enoshima-san’s fingers plow into the floor.

  

Dust kicks up from the impact, causing both of us to sneeze.

  

 

Monitors lined upon the walls turn on as we pass.

 

 

‘Hey, hey, hey!

 

And where do you think you two are going?

 

 

Off to Merry Reality with Kamukura-kun?’

 

  

The ends of her hair are singed.

 

Black blood runs from her eyes…

 

 

Striped spirals even more prominent than they were before.

 

 

‘Don’t forget you’re both supposed to **die** ’.

 

  

A panel sinks under my foot-

 

A sharp pain rips through my toe.

 

 

I pitch to the ground.

 

 

“Chiaki-!?”

 

“I…I can still move…”

 

 

Somehow.

 

 

My own blood drips down the spear as I pull myself free.

 

 

“Come on…”

 

 

 

‘You know, for a while there I had an inkle-ing that you had resigned yourself for this’.

 

 

She pokes her fingers together, lips puckered.

 

 

‘Only now you’re gonna turn around and fight to live!?’

 

 

Her pout becomes an angry roar.

 

 

_‘Well fine then!_

 

_Be that way!!’_

 

 

-An audible _click!_

  

 

‘Run, run, run until you can’t anymore’.

 

 

“-!!”

  

Monomi’s small hand tugs at my skirt.

 

 “Chiaki!!”

 

 

I look over my shoulder, and see what has her so scared:

 

 

A plummeting boulder.

 

  

**‘Then embrace Despair as you die’.**

 

 

-

 

 

_Upupupupupu~_

 

 

Enoshima-san’s iconic laugh mocks us as we pick up the pace.

  

There are thousands of her, thousands of Glasgow-grins on bobbing necks.

 

  

I am strongly reminded of Cathy from _Angels of Death_.

 

 

This entire scenario feels like a dream sequence, and my legs are floating on air.

 

 

Whooshing from farther ahead-

 

 

I try to duck, but still catch two rocks to my left arm, and eye.

 

Half of what I can discern blacks out.

 

 

A massive saw blade pops out of the wall, and I hurriedly duck.

 

For one instant, I’m worried that my balance will give out right then and there.

 

 

Another swings across the corridor in a crescent-motion.

 

 

I fall heavily against the mossy stone in an attempt to avoid it.

 

My collar slits open, warmth spilling down my neck.

 

 

Then they start to pop out of the floor.

 

 

I hike Monomi onto my shoulder, and zig-zag to avoid them.

 

 

My ankles ache, and I know I’ve been hit somewhere…

 

 

Up ahead, the route splits in two.

 

 

I crash into the right while the advancing death trap rolls straight on by.

 

 

“That was almost too close…”

 

 

I can feel her shuddering against my back.

 

 

“Chiaki…I’ll go in front from now on.

 

So you won’t get hurt anymore!”

 

“No…”

 

 

Even though the shock has long since worn off.

 

I still get up.

 

 

“I can be pretty fast!”

 

“What if there are more saws? You could get cut in half-“

 

“Just because I’m short doesn’t mean-!!”

 

 

Something metal smacks her right off!

 

 

“Monomi!?”

 

 

‘Ah, ah, ah!

 

It’s Chance Time!!’

 

 

...What?

 

 

‘Better _not_ think of going back!

 

Depending on where you stop at the count of three, you’ll earn a **real** nice surprise’.

 

 

…

 

 

Monomi is family.

 

 

 

‘…Aw, how sweet!’

 

 

She whirls from side-to-side, fingers clasped.

 

 

‘You wuv each other so mush…’

 

 

Her button eyes gleam from the darkest corner.

 

 

Hop over the saws again…

 

 

My shoe separates beneath my foot.

 

 

 

‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you…you **fool’**.

 

 

One,

  

Two,

  

Three…

 

 

I wrench the scythe out of her torn ear.

  

“Ow…”

 

“It’s…okay.

 

I’ve got you”.

 

 

‘Ready or not, HERE IT COMES!!’

 

 

I turn just as a dull crack resounds through my knee.

 

My good knee.

 

  

“-You witch!!”

 

 

Monomi thunders as I look down in stunned amazement.

 

 

At the five-inch long spear.

 

 

Hands trembling, I lift my leg clear…

 

 

My breath hitches, as I tumble to the stones.

 

 

-

 

 

If I stop moving, I die.

 

 

-

 

 

An adrenaline surge gives me the energy to muscle myself onto rubber feet.

 

The strength to close the distance between escape and freedom…

 

 

“D-don’t strain yourself!” She warns.

 

 “It’s…it’s going to be…okay…”

 

 

It might not be.

  

It might not be, but…

 

 

The door knob shines in the low light.

 

‘Exit’ glowing above it in the same shade of green.

 

 

 

At least I can tell everyone that we tried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to watch her Dr3 death for this...I hate myself.


	18. Death Defied

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Illusions.

GOAL.

 

 

“We’ve almost made it!!” Monomi cheers.

 

“Yes”.

 

 

I grip and turn with unfeeling fingers.

 

 

Soon.

 

 

I fling the door wide.

 

 

A bright light floods the space, and I think I can see…

 

 

 

All of my…classmates…

 

 

“Nanami-san!” Hinata-kun cries, the tears dripping down his cheeks.

 

“We missed you so much-“

 

 

“I missed you too”, I murmur.

 

 

I am all set to enter the room, to greet them all-

 

 

 

**It’s a trap.**

 

 

I know it is…

 

 

I close the door.

 

 

 

The eerie laughter echoing in my ears stops.

 

 

‘What!?’

 

 

Enoshima-san’s face is full of dumbfounded confusion.

 

 

‘…GrrrrRRRRRR **_NANAMI-!!!’_**

 

 

I ignore the temper-tantrum, and let Monomi take my hand.

 

 

“The way out isn't here”.

 

“No?”

 

“No…”

 

 

It never was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAH. J.E. can get over herself.


	19. Heroes Have Courage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to escape!

We’ll have to backtrack.

 

…

 

 

I’ve got to hang on.

 

 

Monomi looks up at me worriedly.

 

Her fur is practically drenched in sweat.

 

 

“Chiaki…?”

 

“Maybe there’s a secret exit somewhere around here”.

 

 

‘Tough luck!’ Enoshima-san yells from the monitors.

 

‘The only exit IS through that door’.

 

 

Her cheeks flush.

 

 

‘Upupupupu~!!

 

You’re officially stuck between a death trap and a hard place!’

 

 

Ice-blue eyes have ‘I win’ written all over them.

 

 

‘Even if you try to go back, you’ll just die’.

 

 

“Die!?”

 

“Don’t worry, Monomi…she’s only trying to scare us”.

 

“But…I’m scared”.

 

 

Teardrops form…

 

 

“I know.

 

Who wouldn’t be scared?”

 

 

I reach down, and cup her chin.

 

 

“That’s why we have to push on anyway.

 

After all it’s only impossible if you don’t go for it, right?”

 

 

“R…Right!”

 

 

She rubs her fear away.

 

 

“Let’s do it!!”

 

 

‘Oh my God, you’re both idiots!’

 

 

Her exasperated groaning quickly turns to ecstatic happiness.

 

 

 

‘I can’t wait for the perfect moment to utterly **crush** your hope!!’

 

 

-

 

 

It’s mostly a straight shot.

 

I think…

 

 

A lot of the traps should have gone off by now, so, yeah.

 

 

I do get a little scared myself when the saws re-emerge.

 

My limbs are _this_ close to becoming lead.

 

 

I don’t know if I can pull off another series of jumps.

 

 

 

“Side-step, side-step, oVER-!! Yesyes, that’s it-“

 

 

She hops off of her perch, and carefully, frantically does her best to help me navigate by…

 

 

‘It’s useless, I’m telling you-‘

 

 

“You and your bear can go to the Fiery Place!!”

 

 

I struggle to draw in any breath.

 

The falling sensation returns with a vengeance-

 

 

Or did it never really disappear to begin with?

 

 

The Way Out.

 

 I can barely make out its bright edges.

 

 …

 

 

I don’t want to tempt fate.

 

 

We careen for the door-just as a steel cover slides over it.

 

 

‘Seeee!!?

 

I toooollddd youuuuu~’

 

 

My stomach flops.

 

 

“Nononono!!!!” Monomi panics.

 

 Can’t leave the way we came in, can’t leave through this new door…

 

 “We’ll…we’ll just…have to…”

 

 

Keep...looking…

 

.

 

 

We don’t have that kind of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Harder than it seems.


	20. Power Gives

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Interrupted.

Monomi fruitlessly pounds on the metal.

 

 

“It can’t end like this!

 

It just _can’t!!_ ”

 

 

I don’t want to believe that, either.

 

 

…But I’m just about out of life.

 

 

My knees thud as they hit the tiles, my clothes heavy with the weight of my own blood.

 

 

The urge to sleep is powerful.

 

 

To slip into whatever comes next with as much effort as holding a game-cube controller.

 

 

 

“There’s gotta be an exit somewhere!!!”

 

 

 

She spins around on her worn heels.

 

 

 

“Right Chiaki?”

 

 

“…”

 

 

_“Chiaki!!?”_

 

 

My hands splay in an effort to pick myself up.

 

Pink slicks the ground…

 

 

‘Hey. Hey. Hey. Chiaki…

 

**How does it feel to die alone?** ’

 

 

My feet inch out from under me.

 

 

I cough, and feathers fly out.

 

 

“For the last time, stop it!!” Monomi shrieks.

 

 

I cough harder.

 

More feathers…

 

 

My throat feels clogged with them, and my chest…

 

 

Hurts.

 

 

 

‘Awww, is the wittle wabbit upset?

 

Maybe you should be _thanking_ me!

 

 

After all, if you both cooperate and just shut down you won’t have to suffer at _their_ hands later’.

 

 

“Why are you even working with them anyway!?”

 

 

‘Are you kidding!?

 

Do you know how much despair their takeover would cause-‘

 

 

 

Their charged conversation drifts…

 

Until I’m just barely clinging to a thread.

 

 

I thump onto my side.

 

 

“…ki…wake…up…”

 

 

-

 

 

It blooms outward from my heart.

 

An uncoiling of something new.

 

 

The skin tears, and the bones of my ribs contort and re-shape themselves to make room.

 

 

-For the onrush of eight-foot wings.

 

 

 

The tips drag through the metal between us and escape, cleaving it neatly in half.

 

 

 

I coughed again, a stronger, deeper push-

 

 

 

 

They’re gone.

 

 

-

 

 

Clapping.

 

 

His eyes are brighter, more violet.

 

He’d made a full recovery in an awfully short time…

 

 

Due to Lilith’s stones, probably.

 

 

 

…I’m more surprised that I’m still alive.

 

 

 

“Gautier told me you’d be out in one piece-

 

Though I must admit, I had my doubts when you began to slow”.

 

 

“-!!”

 

 

A strand of silken webbing wrapped around Monomi’s waist-

 

 

“No, Chiaki-!!!”

 

 

Haltingly, I stretched out my arms and leaped for her!

 

 

Pain flooded through my elbows as I missed by inches. . .

 

 

Haruko and Kira took her from the grinning Jorogumo.

 

 

“It is good to see you back, Nanami-san.

 

However, we must leave now…

 

 

Perhaps we’ll see each other again someday”.

 

 

 

“Please…please take good care of her!” I shout as they leave me…behind.

 

 

“Don’t you dare hurt her!

 

Don’t you **dare-**!!”

 

 

My sister’s voice becomes fainter the farther away she gets.

 

 

He kneels down on one knee, both hands coming up to lightly cradle the sides of my face.

 

 

“Nanami Chiaki…it must be confessed, I had no idea you were going to betray me so utterly”.

 

 

His irises storm with restless yet soothing shadows.

 

 

“In fact, I was rather floored by how your hope saved you from that woman’s incredibly-elaborate death trap”.

 

 

…Where is he going with this?

 

 

“I suppose what I am trying to say here is that…I would like you to work for me”.

 

 

Those eyes…I can’t pull away.

 

 

“Even in spite of that betrayal”.

 

 

 

A trance.

 

 

 

That’s…what you would call this…

 

 

“Now”.

 

 

He helps me to my feet, and I have the weirdest feeling that I’m being directed by puppet strings.

 

 

“I need you to do something for me”.

 

 

“Like what?”

 

 

“I need you to go to the Temple of the Collector at the Center Island, and retrieve a gem of Hades-

 

I intend to fashion it into a ring for my beloved, and I need it soon”.

 

 

I want to tell him that I won’t do it, but my mouth doesn’t move.

 

 

“Surely you have the experience necessary for the task from all of those...'temple crawlers'.

 

And as much as you may detest me and my goals, I have your sister.

 

If you value her safety, you’ll stay loyal for the rest of our…vacation”.

 

 

I follow his beckoning hand like clockwork.

 

 

Does he know?

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

I don’t think he does.

 

 

An unfamiliar warmth mixed with coolness rests alongside my heart.

 

The softness of the feathers is…

 

 

Substantial.

 

 

I know it’s there-

 

 

I’m shaky, feet sailing an inch off the floor.

 

 

...Unglued.

 

 

 

One moment, and then it was over.

 

 

My first experience as the Ultimate…

 

 

 

…Angel?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Those wings'll have to stay hidden...


	21. Temple Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dangerous quest. A dangerous man.

Komaeda-kun’s not wearing his green coat anymore.

 

I still know it’s him when I numbly reach the bridge.

 

 

“Nanami-san…is it really you?”

 

 

His Phantom’s cloak billows in the Island Breeze.

 

 

“I think…so?”

 

 

Removing his mask, the jitters in me…get better.

 

 

“It’s definitely _you_ ”.

 

“Sort-of”.

 

 

He does seem like he regrets something…

 

 

“My plan failed didn’t it?”

 

“Yeah”.

 

“…Well.

 

That figures”.

 

 

Laughing awkwardly, he rubs his neck.

 

 

“I should’ve realized it would end that way…what with my luck being the way it is”.

 

“It’s alright…the others were able to escape, so it’s definitely alright”.

 

 

“After all this time, you’re still hopeful”.

 

“…And you still really like hope a lot”.

 

 

I can’t help but feel a little bit disappointed in him.

 

 

“Yeah…I’m guessing you don’t want me to tell you that you and Monomi’s efforts to live even at the doorstep of Despair were like shining beacons of-“

 

“Just don’t overdo it”.

 

“Thought so”.

 

 

*Ahem*

 

 

The Cursed God’s eyebrow is raised as he coughs.

 

He’s not very subtle.

 

 

“…I’ve gotta go”.

 

“Off to the next great adventure?”

 

“Not exactly…”

 

 

I lean in briefly.

 

 

“Please find Monomi”.

 

 

The line of monsters on either side all ‘ _oooooh!!!_ ’

 

 

I can’t imagine what they’re cheering for…

 

 

Is it because it looks like I kissed him on the ear?

 

 

He certainly does seem more flustered than he did before.

 

 

“I will”, Komaeda-kun whispers back.

 

 

 

“Thank you”.

 

-

 

I’ve stopped glitching out.

 

And all my injuries have been healed.

 

 

-How did that happen?

 

- _When_ did that happen?

 

 

 

I grow a pair of wings, and all my aches are cured?

 

I live on instead of dying?

 

 

…This doesn’t make any sense.

 

 

My head whirls with possible game theories as I climb the many…many steps.

 

 

What did I do?

 

…

 

Is it…?

 

...

 

 

I enter the room at the top of the Aztec-shaped pyramid.

 

It’s quiet.

 

 

Too quiet.

 

 

I keep expecting something to go wrong with every footfall.

 

 

Nothing does.

 

 

There’s almost no light.

 

None of the torches mounted on the walls are lit.

 

 

The Collector wouldn’t want to waste his oil, right?

 

 

Putting a hand along the border so I won’t lose my orientation, I carry on into the dark…

 

 

They flare to life as I walk.

 

 

Weird.

 

-

 

I enter the first antechamber I see, looking for anything that might even remotely resemble a gem.

 

 

-The floor tilts.

 

 

 

“-!”

 

 

I can’t say I didn’t expect this-!!

 

 

The more I move, the more everything leans.

 

I have to center all my weight in my toes-

 

 

I end up sliding halfway across the gallery.

 

 

Priceless portraits, and artifacts from times past.

 

But no jewels.

 

 

Doing my best to avoid hitting (and breaking) anything, I pass through the next six rooms in succession.

 

I scrape my elbows, split open my knees, and knock my forehead off a low-hanging partition.

 

 

And when I see the gleaming-red glow of a large gem clasped in the palms of a Greek statue…

 

I guess it was all worth it.

 

 

I fight my way to the very end, and reach out both hands to pry it loose-

 

 

 

The floor swings _exceptionally_ hard.

 

 

 

I fall sideways, my right hand catching the muzzle of an ebony, dog-like statue.

 

Seconds later, a black wave of power pools from the base of the sculpture, crawling along the floor, and slinking up my legs.

 

 

Cold chills, **stars**.

 

 

Up my thighs, torso, chest, and arms.

 

 

My wings flutter, shiver against the bones of my rib cage in response.

 

 

It’s…not an unpleasant sensation….

 

Just…an odd one.

 

 

 

Up my neck, my head…

 

Over my face, and my eyes sting from the watery substance

 

 

.

 

The dankness pours down my throat.

 

 

 

I wake up lying on the floor, the gem neatly tucked into my hand.

 

Gold eyes flash and then disappear…

 

 

What…was that?

 

-

 

“Amazing”.

 

The Cursed God sounds pleased.

 

 

“You got it”.

 

 

I feel shaky again.

 

 

Words from earlier float to my mind…a list of names.

 

They repeat themselves over and over.

 

 

 

I’m not supposed to know.

 

 

 

Those violet eyes focus on mine.

 

 

“Bow down, if you would so please…”

 

 

 

I’m under.

 

 

 

Kneeling, I lower my gaze.

 

 

Extend both arms out, with the gem face-up.

 

 

 

“For you…my Lord”.

 

 

“‘Lord’?”

 

 

These words that I said.

 

Aren’t really mine.

 

 

“I was thinking that ‘Master’ would be more appropriate in this situation…don’t you think?”

 

 

Subtle as a _brick_.

 

 

“For you, my Master”.

 

 

I continue on as he nods in approval.

 

 

“The gem of Hades, as you requested”.

 

 

“Thank you, my dear”.

 

 

A sudden absence where the stone used to be.

 

 

“This ring will be what finally captures her heart--if I cannot pass through the barrier, at the very least, I can win her over from afar using Windows”.

 

 

Because dreams won’t work anymore.

 

If only she would learn to just stop struggling!

 

 

…I don’t want her to die, to disintegrate into nothing!

 

I want her to simply give in.

 

 

To show up here as planned…

 

 

 

Ah…but how did I know she was going to ruin everything!?

 

 

The thoughts come unbidden-from him.

 

 

They must be from him…

 

 

 

-I can see his heart.

 

It’s literally as black as night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...I think I created a new ship.


	22. Heroic B.S.O.D

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She's caught in a trance, and she can't get out.

When I’m not staring at the wall in an endless funk.

 

I can see everyone’s else’s hearts.

 

 

The clowns’ are a blood-spattered rainbow.

 

The dolls have red-and-white stripes.

 

The vampires are gray lace.

 

 

I can see everyone’s hearts and hear their thoughts…

 

 

In only a matter of days (weeks?) I know everything there is to know about what they’re doing, and what they want.

 

 

-A snap, and I immediately feed him a grape.

 

-

 

I’d like you to dance for me.

 

  

…The only dances I know are the Fortnite emotes.

 

 

How did I get in this outfit?

 

 

It looks like a Playboy Bunny.

 

 

Not my style at all.

 

 

 

The stage is too small, and I almost floss myself right off.

 

 

Enthusiastic clapping, and a few…looks from the audience.

 

  

I don’t like that.

 

-

 

I wake them up at the crack of dawn by wiring an airhorn into the island speakers.

 

 

Kerrie: Lemme at ‘em!!

 

I’ll fr*n stab you to death for this!

 

 

Calvin: What?

 

…We can’t have five more minutes? *yawns*

 

 

The Sorceress: I am going to CURSE you!!!

 

-Come back here and face me like a woman!

 

 

Soldiers on both the Dark and Confederate armies stir, not without some groaning and complaints.

 

 

I would tell them that it was Lilith’s idea (strongly helped along by Enoshima-san), but I don’t want her to die…

 

-

 

Grape after grape after grape after grape.

 

Eight-o-clock to five-o-clock in the blink of an eye.

 

 

Time stands still, yet passes by.

 

 

My legs grow tired.

 

 

He eats them all up.

 

 

When the complicated stem is emptied, I march off to the ramen shop for another.

 

 

The sewage system backed-up some time last week.

  

It smells awful.

 

-

 

I’m in a green crop-top, and stretchy pants of the same shade.

 

-Except we’re doing the Orange Justice move today.

 

 

All these eyes on me…

 

 

I think they’re watching every part of my body.

 

 

It’s not a long dance, so…

 

 

 

Can I just get out of here now?

 

-

 

“Miss Nanami…”

 

“Yes, Master?”

 

“Later this week, I need you to go back to the Temple”.

 

 

Again?

 

 

“Of course”.

 

“Splendid. Only the relics hidden within will do as wedding gifts”.

 

 

For when we finally get out of here.

 

  

“Do you understand?”

 

“Yes Master”.

 

  

“Good”.

 

-

 

His hold on me is waning.

 

For once, while I’m standing here, I don’t feel like I can’t move my eyes away from the empty room.

 

 

Time drags much slower.

 

 

I keep catching myself fantasizing about playing the new Smash Bros. game, or maybe an old Fire Emblem title.

 

 

I want to do anything but this.

 

 

And yet.

  

 

I can’t let on that these thoughts are rushing through my mind, just as much as I can’t let anyone know about the wings tucked inside.

 

 

…My working theory is that they’re there because I was able to thwart an evil God’s powers-his.

 

-

 

Dark leather with a lot of straps.

 

I do the ‘whip nae nae’.

 

 

The stares are nerve-wrackingly suggestive.

 

 

Maybe it was like that all along-

 

 

My face hurts.

 

It’s been stinging with a dull pain off and on all day.

 

 

If I had time, I would check it out in a mirror.

 

 

Exhaustion and discomfort ripple through me.

 

 

My wings have been stifled for a while.

 

I routinely cough up feathers.

 

 

I catch myself dreaming about leaping into the fresh air, and letting them loose.

 

The bad-ends virtually non-existent.

 

 

Pressure…

 

I can barely hold it.

 

 

I finish the last hand gesture, and am careful to walk at a controlled pace out of the room.

 

-

 

The tenderness of my nose and mouth is joined by certain spots on my tailbone, and above my eyes.

 

I reached a hand up there yesterday, and felt…fur.

 

 

Canine teeth are jutting out of my jaw.

 

 

I’m beginning to look more dog than human.

 

 

“Miss Nanami-“

 

“Yes Master?”

 

 

I exit the stall at a run.

 

 

“What is it you need?”

 

“-As you know, I’ve been working on a shrine to my beloved”.

 

“Yes”.

 

 

It seems like all he can talk about lately.

 

 

“What it deserves for the final touches…are precious jewels”.

 

“I saw some in the last room, Master”.

 

 

“Fetch some for me, won’t you?”

 

“Of course, Master”.

 

-

 

The same old motions every day…

 

For the past what?

 

 

Three or four weeks?

 

 

An entire month?

 

 

How much time…

 

…

 

…Hey.

 

How much longer do I have to do this for!?

 

-

 

I’m at the bridge for the second time.

 

Komaeda-kun is there in a flash.

 

 

With three very welcome words.

 

 

 

_I found Monomi._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AND I'm gonna pass out.


	23. Hack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakout...

“You did!?”

 

I’m overjoyed to hear it!

I’ve really missed her.

 

 

“She’s with Benjamin and Cindy”.

 

 

His brows furrow in thought as it sinks in.

 

 

“I think I can manage to finagle her away from them-“

 

“I feel kind of bad…they really wanted a kid…”

 

“They can live without Monomi.

 

She’s yours, not theirs’”.

 

“Technically, she’s not mine…she’s family”.

 

“-And that’s a story I must’ve missed”.

 

 

I nod.

 

 

“Nanami-san…even though I’m working with the Cursed God now, I still consider you a friend”.

 

“Same here”.

 

“As I knew you would say”.

 

 

He re-adjusts the brim of his hat.

 

A nervous fidget, maybe.

 

 

“-So I appealed to the Spiders’ for help”.

 

“You did?”

 

 

That’s news to me.

 

 

“I didn’t think they liked men”.

 

“Neither did I, but apparently they really like you”.

 

 

Komaeda-kun chews his lip.

 

 

“They also mentioned something about having a promise to fulfill?”

 

“…I don’t know”.

 

“They’ll be here soon.

 

I’ve just to run back to the lovebirds’ cabin-“

 

“I’ll wait.

 

I have the next few days off…I think…”

 

-

 

My arms shake as they grip my knees.

 

 

The sun is low in the sky-

 

Sunset is almost here.

 

 

He’ll be here.

 

I know he will-

 

 

“Sorry I’m late!”

 

 

He comes running out of the orange glow, burn marks visible on his fingers.

 

 

“Apparently there are mines nested under the main thoroughfares, now”.

 

 

He grimaces.

 

 

“And I tripped all of them”.

 

 

Burn marks visible on his face, and clothes.

 

 

Behind him, I can hear skittering noises…

 

 

“Time for us all to leave, Nanami-san”.

 

 

Kira and Haruko nod in synch.

 

 

“Yeah!

 

Let’s get the heck out of here!!”

 

 

Monomi’s voice-!

 

 

She leaps from Jorogumo’s arms, and into mine.

 

 

“I really missed you!”

 

“I missed you too!!”

 

 

We hug, and I feel a giant weight float off of my chest.

 

 

No longer do I have to stay here.

 

No longer do I have to live with the threat of her death hanging over my head…

 

 

“Thank you…everyone…”

 

 

“Ahahaha, it was nothing…”

 

“It was our honor, Nanami-san”.

 

 

“Yeah, thanks!”

 

 

My little sister’s eyes shine with tears.

 

 

“Cindy and Benjamin were nice but I belong with you, Chiaki!”

 

 

...I am never letting you go again.

 

-

 

“You know…”

 

Komaeda-kun wafts a hand experimentally at the faint, gold barrier keeping him in.

 

 

“If we’re going to all leave together, we’ll have to come up with some kind of distraction”.

 

“You’re going too?”

 

“My beloved’s at the-“

 

“No”.

 

“What?”

 

“Bad!”

 

I poke him in the cheek.

 

“You can’t go pressing your hope on Mystic if she doesn’t want it”.

 

“But how did you-“

 

“I’ll tell you after we’re not in danger of being overheard”.

 

“But she’s my-“

 

 

Exasperatedly, I grasp his face with both hands.

 

 

“I’LL be your hope!

 

Okay!?”

 

 

His mouth drops open.

 

 

Jorogumo snicker-coughs into her arm.

 

I think.

 

 

“…

 

…

 

…Okay”.

 

 

I sigh.

 

 

“Okay.

 

So.

 

 

What did you have in mind?”

 

-

 

“My luck will probably let me open a hole in the barrier for as long as I’m touching it”, he begins.

 

“At which point, we’ll be seeing a lot of sparks, and I don’t know what that will do to the overall structure, or how much anyone will notice it”.

 

 

“…I see”.

 

 

My heart skips a beat.

 

 

They _cannot_ find out about Komaeda-kun’s luck!

 

 

Wondering if my angel powers will cover this, I drop to one knee, and place my palm against the earth.

 

 

I know it’s tainted, but…

 

I should still be able to show the island’s code.

 

 

Concentrating, I gently push a small pocket of air into the digital mapping.

 

It caves inward, thrusting out a ripple of wind.

 

 

A circle of swirling silver numbers and letters fills a blue-black void…

 

 

“How big of a distraction are we talking here?”

 

“I was thinking the bigger the better”.

 

 

“Mm…in that case…”

 

 

I bring up the island physics with a few small touches.

 

A 3D rendering of the entire geometric setup rises above the raw data.

 

 

I hover my fingertip over the fifth island…

 

 

“You can start”.

 

 

He steps over the line as I push down the material.

 

As far as I can get it.

 

 

The barrier snaps, and flashes, a light-show of vibrant sparks crackling through the air-

 

He holds an arm through from the other side, allowing the three spider women to pass.

 

 

A vicious rumbling rocks the island.

 

Startled cries and shouts echo from all around.

 

 

The water rises, as the bridge splits.

 

 

It’s going down.

 

 

“Nanami-san!

 

Hurry!!”

 

 

I hop to my feet, and race through the hole, Monomi jouncing along in my grip.

 

 

“Chiaki…I don’t know how to swim…”

 

 

“It’ll be fine.

 

I can fly”.

 

 

“HEY!!”

 

 

The red-pigtailed cheerleader.

 

Lucy…was it?

 

 

She glares in rage as the six of us sprint to freedom.

 

 

“No fair!

 

You can’t just run away-

 

 

I did all this work to get here-!!”

 

-

 

“N’ARRRGh!!”

 

 

She slams her baseball bat violently into the ground!

 

 

_Every._

 

_Single._

 

 

**_Time!!_ **

 

 

The d* girl gets away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They tried.


	24. 'On My Own' Hero Complex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to go separate ways.

I did it.

 

I…I really did it…

 

 

I colllapsed-

 

 

The island.

 

 

 

…That’ll make it harder for them to get out, and it was as big of a distraction as you could get.

 

 

I do feel a little bad about it, but it had to be sunk.

 

 

I hope no one from the Center Island notices.

 

-

 

“This is as far as I should go…I think”.

 

“What?”

 

 

Komaeda-kun looks confused, Monomi is nearly crying in distress, and the three spiders seem…resigned.

 

Either that, or they have something else planned…

 

 

I rub my aching head.

 

 

“I’m sorry guys…

 

But-“

 

 

“You’re still under his control”, he finishes for me.

 

 

“Yeah…it’s gone down some weirdly enough, yet I just have that feeling.

 

That he might try to check in on me at some point”.

 

 

“And if you’re not where you’re supposed to be, then he might put two-and-two together”.

 

 

“That’s exactly right”.

 

 

“Be careful Nanami-san”, Jorogumo warns.

 

Her handmaidens nod in agreement.

 

 

“Please, _please_ , **please** be okay!!”

 

 

I give my sister one last hug before handing her off to the four who can still get clear.

 

 

“You all please don’t get caught”.

 

 

“Then, ’till we meet again?”

 

His eyes flicker with…love?

 

 

“Hey”.

 

 

I poke him lightly on the forehead.

 

 

“No going after Mystic!”

 

 

-Surprised, again.

 

 

“How do you-?”

 

“I’ll tell you later!”

 

 

Like I said!

 

 

“I’m supposed to be your hope now!”

 

“I know but-“

 

“Do you love her for her, or for her hope?”

 

 

-That stops him.

 

 

“…I…”

 

 

I wait for him to figure out his response.

 

 

“I…isn’t hope and love the same thing?”

 

“Not when you take it to extremes.

 

Does she even want you back?”

 

 

Images flicker behind his puzzled eyes.

 

 

“…But I love her so much!”

 

 

It’s a ‘no’ then.

 

 

“Sometimes people don’t love the other”.

 

 

That’s just the way it is.

 

 

“What happened to your crush on Hinata-kun anyway?”

 

 

Monomi gasps.

 

The spiders roll their eyes.

 

 

They must be really done with this guy.

 

 

He blushes into a human-vegetable.

 

 

“I…did.

 

But I don’t think he’s into guys”.

 

 

“Well…what are you going to do now?”

 

 

Depending on how he answers after this conversation, I’ll either have to make him come with me, or poke him for the third time, or both.

 

Or I won’t have to worry at all.

 

 

“…I’m going to follow you”.

 

 

I nearly fall over.

 

 

“That’s-that’s good”.

 

 

Kira and Haruko exchange exasperated looks for some reason.

 

Shipping?

 

 

“Meanwhile, we shall take Monomi to a place of…safety”.

 

“Thank you”.

 

-

 

“Chiaki, I’m so scared-“

 

“It’s alright.

 

Jorogumo will protect you”.

 

“Not for me-for YOU!”

 

 

I smile sadly.

 

 

“I know…”

 

 

The likelihood of my ever seeing her again is 0.001%.

 

 

“I’ll find some way”.

 

“-And I’m here too, don’t forget!” Komaeda-kun cheers.

 

 

“If you let something bad happen to her, I will find my Magic Stick, and hit you with it…gently!!!!”

 

 

“I…uh…I will keep that in mind”.

 

-

 

Approximately one minute of nervous laughing later, and Jorogumo takes her leave.

 

“Good luck to you Nanami-san…and may it all work out for the best”.

 

“You too”.

 

 

-Komaeda-kun doesn’t dare speak up.

 

It also probably doesn’t help that Monomi is shooting him the scariest death glare ever.

 

 

I wave as they scuttle off into the distant palm trees…and I keep waving until the four of them are tiny dots on the horizon.

 

-

 

This is my second climb up the pyramid.

 

Komaeda-kun wipes the sweat off of the brim of his hat.

 

 

“Phew!

 

Well this is a long trek…”

 

“We can stop for a rest if you want”.

 

“No, no, I’m fine…”

 

 

I pass through the doorway with no problem.

 

Komaeda-kun, though…

 

 

_**Halt** , ssssstranger…_

 

 

The sound of slithering.

 

 

“-A snake?”

 

 

He’s torn between fear, and ‘oh, what’s this’?

 

 

What I thought was a shadowed stick at first uncoils, and rears into a massive King Cobra.

 

 

_I wassss willing to let you passsss becausssse I could sssssense that your heart wasssss pure._

 

 

Their glowing eyes glance affectionately at me.

 

 

_You, on the other hand-_

 

**_Are anything but._ **

 

 

Komaeda-kun sighs.

 

 

“My polarizing reputation precedes me everywhere, doesn’t it…”

 

 

_You, I will not allow to go any further!_

 

 

Their hood flares, their hissing growing angry and almost deafening.

 

 

“Hey, easy!”

 

 

He raises his hands in surrender.

 

 

“I won’t touch anything, I swear”.

 

 

_Sssstill._

 

_He musssst sssstay here._

 

 

_Where I can easssssily ssssee him._

 

 

“…Are you a Protector?”

 

_A what?_

 

“A Protector. An NPC guardian”.

 

_…_

 

_…I am a Protector, yessss…_

 

 

“Do you have a name?”

 

 

They rear back, stunned.

 

 

_…How do you know thissss?_

 

 

“That’s Nanami-san for you!” Komaeda-kun says happily.

 

 

_It isss Cordjet._

 

 

“…

 

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

Were you a human once?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY!! Snake Boi is here!!!


	25. Video Game Gods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And it all starts to go downhill.

We’re all shocked.

 

 

Komaeda-kun: Whoa! Is that true?

 

 Cordjet: _How…do you know!?_

 

 Nanami Chiaki: …

 

 

How did I know that?

 

 

“I…”

 

 Think I just…heard it.

 

 

_Heard it?_

 

“I’m kind-of at a loss here…”

 

 

I…don’t know how else to explain it.

 

 

“I can see someone’s true nature, and their secrets-“

 

 

_I have been carrying that one for a long time._

 

 

They go quiet.

 

 

_…When I was a young boy, I touched a relic._

 

_It changed me over time…and now I am as you see me._

 

 

I touched a relic too…

 

All those moments of the Cursed God’s hypnosis fading, the pain at my temples, nose, and tailbone.

 

 

How soon will I become a walking dog?

 

 

“Is there any way to cure it?”

 

 

_There is._

 

_Inside the seventh room of the Temple is an antidote that should restore me to my true form when administered…although I have no doubt that it is already too late for me._

 

 

“Then I’ll go on ahead and get it.

 

You…you should be able to have your life back”.

 

-

 

The tilting floors still left me with plenty of scrapes-

 

Even though I’d already been through it once before.

 

 

Its motion patterns were random, the probabilities an impossible puzzle to figure out.

 

 

Maybe someday, I would have time to crack the code.

 

 

When I reached the seventh room, I braced myself to be thrown again.

 

-

 

**ZAP!!**

 

 

An electric sear through my blood!

 

I fall to the ground, the infected areas blooming with fur at last, my jaws and teeth aching as they re-arrange themselves.

 

 

I knew it.

 

I _knew_ it-

 

 

Low chuckling from somewhere above me.

 

 A dark shadow spreads over my body…

 

 

“Greetings, Nanami Chiaki”.

 

 

Golden eyes loom out of nowhere.

 

 

“I have been waiting for this moment for millennia”.

 

-

 

He helps me up, but I’m still suspicious.

 

His dog’s head holds no trace of emotion other than reserved satisfaction.

 

 

“…You’re Anubis, right?”

 

“Why yes”.

 

“You’re here because I touched the relic, right?”

 

“Yes…”

 

 

I puff out my cheeks in annoyance.

 

 

“You want to stop me, don’t you?”

 

“Yes”.

 

 

He doesn’t deny it…

 

 

“From getting the antidotes”.

 

“Yes, that is why I’m here”.

 

 

I try to step around him, but feel the hot sparks snap against my toes.

 

 

...If I’m an angel now.

 

Could I hack a way around him?

 

 

Oddly enough, I can’t bring myself to do it.

 

 

“Shall we return to the antechamber you first entered from?”

 

 

It’s not a question.

 

 

And my feet pick themselves up and walk me away before I can even think twice.

 

-

 

The silence I come back to…

 

 

“Komaeda-kun?

 

Cordjet?”

 

…

 

No answer.

 

From either of them.

 

 

“Guys?”

 

  _My Lord…_

 

 

I find the latter bowing at Anubis’ knees.

 

 

“Cordjet…I’m sorry.

 

I couldn’t get into the seventh room”.

 

 

He doesn’t answer me.

 

 

“Hello, Cordjet.

 

Minding Wadjet’s portrait still?”

 

 

_Yes, my Lord._

 

 

“…Do not worry.

 

Someday, your beloved shall appear”.

 

 

But the way he said it made me think of false hope.

 

 

“Cordjet, where is Komaeda-kun?”

 

 

“Oh.

Him?”

 

 

With a flick of his wrist, a beam of light shot down from the ceiling.

 

Illuminating a lifelike statue of-

 

 

“-!”

 

 

 

Komaeda…kun…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, you heard me right. Komaeda-kun's luck finally ran out. For now.


	26. Sticking Point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is my new reality.

Solid black stone.

 

I reached out a finger, and felt for his forehead.

 

 

That’s what he was.

 

 

“How…did you do this?”

 

“Yes. I did”.

 

 

He sounds almost…jealous.

 

 

“I couldn’t risk having him steal you out from under me”.

 

“Is there a way to save him?”

 

“Why would you want him back?”

 

 

His nostrils flare.

 

 

“When I am the only one who can make you happy”.

 

 

 

The alarm bells go off in my head.

 

 

 

“I don’t think so”.

 

I make a move for the door, but-

 

 

My feet stick in place.

 

 

“Not so fast, my dear ChiAnubis”.

 

ChiAnubis?

 

 

I can hear his sandaled feet creeping up behind me.

 

 

“As of this moment, you belong to me”.

 

 

His arms link around my waist.

 

 

I try not to panic.

 

-

 

_I am sorry, ChiAnubis._

 

“For what?”

 

 

Cordjet slithers agitatedly from one side of the room to the other.

 

 

_I had no idea you too had been doomed to share my fate._

 

“It’s not your fault. I didn’t even know that was what was waiting for me here-and I’m usually pretty good about guessing these things”.

 

 

Mm…

 

Yeah, that really annoys me.

 

 

“But you know that you don’t have to call me ChiAnubis, right?”

 

_I’m afraid I must. Once one falls under the thrall of a God in this place, their name is changed to reflect that._

 

 

I take a moment to digest this.

 

 

“…What used to be your name?”

 

 

He looks surprised again.

 

 

_Corbin._

 

“That’s a nice name”.

 

_Thank you._

 

“Is there any way to free yourself from their control?”

 

_Not at present…besides the antidotes._

 

 

-Which I can’t get to.

 

 

I sigh.

 

 

“How long does the curse last?”

 

_For eternity…_

 

“A few days ago, I was under someone else’s command.

 

But gradually it’s been wearing off.

 

Is that due to this-“

 

 

I gesture at my new ears, muzzle, and tail.

 

 

“Transformation, too?”

 

_Yes._

 

 

I mull that over.

 

 

“What did he mean by ‘I am the only one who can make you happy’?”

 

_I would assume that he has fallen for you._

 

“Fallen…”

 

_In love._

 

 

Love?

 

 

“With me?”

 

_Yes._

 

 

His eyes are full of apology.

 

 

_An alternative to the antidotes is waiting for someone to appear who will touch the artifact that left one in this state._

 

_The two shall then spend the rest of eternity as Soul Mates._

 

“But if neither of them are in love with each other?”

 

_…It cannot be helped._

 

 

My stomach turns a little bit.

 

 

“That’s…disturbing”.

 

-

 

I don’t know how much time has gone by…

 

If this keeps up, I don’t think I ever will again.

 

 

I don't know where Anubis went after he kept me from leaving.

 

But.

 

 

Because he’s not here.

 

 

I decide to make a break for it.

 

 

I don’t plan on leaving Komaeda-kun and Cordjet alone, I just want to see if the hotel-goers are still there.

 

 

It’s not in our power to undo the curses, but it might be in theirs-

 

 

“ChiAnubis…”

 

My voice.

 

 

“Don’t leave”.

 

 

Not my words.

 

 

My feet don’t just stick this time…they whirl and walk me back into the space just as I am about to escape into the sunshine.

 

-

 

_I am so sorry._

 

_I should have warned you._

 

 

“About the possession?”

 

 

_Yes._

 

_If you belong to a God, they can do that to you as much as they wish._

 

-

 

Occasionally, I’ll feel flickers of pleasure lapping at my temples.

 

I’m already reeling from learning that a puppet is me for the rest of eternity.

 

 

This added on top, makes me want to throw up.

 

 

Not to mention that I’ve never felt something like that before.

 

It’s like I’ve become one of those farm animals Hinata-kun took me to see once:

 

 

Docile, and too warm.

 

-

 

Remembering my mission to bring the Cursed God relics, I step into the first room.

 

What’ll happen if I touch another relic?

 

 

Will I be in twice as much trouble?

 

 

Holding my breath, I gingerly grasp a book covered in runes.

 

 

Nothing.

 

-

 

More time passes.

 

The more artifacts I touch, the more I’m sure that I’m already as spelled as I am going to get.

 

 

One day, I attempt to carry the book out of there.

 

 

“My dear, you simply cannot leave”.

 

 

I want to tell him that it’s not for me, it’s for-

 

My mouth refuses to open for anything else.

 

-

 

Something else strange is going on.

 

These days, I find myself thinking of Anubis.

 

 

What he’s doing right now.

 

Where he is…

 

 

Who he’s hanging out with.

 

 

And whether he loves me just as much as I-

 

 

 

Oh.

 

-

 

I know what this is.

 

I’ve been fighting it for a good week now:

 

 

His powerful mental suggestions.

 

 

I don’t like him.

 

 

I would’ve had no opinion of him if he’d just let things be.

 

 

But now I don’t like him at all!

 

-

 

“ChiAnubis…why won’t you accept me?”

 

You’re kind of creeping me out, to be honest.

 

“And why is that?”

 

Well, I don’t like you that way.

 

“My darling…you don’t really believe that, do you?”

 

What else is there to believe?

 

“That I can make you very happy”.

 

 

The flickers of pleasure that have progressed in time and strength reach their head in an instant.

 

 

My face involuntarily breaks into a grin.

 

 

It’s like I finally clawed my way to the top of Bennett Foddy’s ‘Getting Over It’, after a thousand different tries.

 

 

Heat rises to my cheeks, and I bite my lips.

 

 

…It really does feel,

 

**Good.**

 

 

Thoughts of him float in front of the barriers of code in my mind.

 

-!!

 

I try to shut them down, but they’re coming in like a flood!

 

 

I know what this is.

 

-

 

How long has it been now?

 

Do I even care?

 

No.

 

And that’s what scares me.

 

 

It’s just…so nice and warm…all the time…

 

 

 

I think of him, and it feels so…right.

 

-

 

Days go by.

 

The feeling fades…

 

 

As the euphoria dies, I find myself able to more easily think of other things.

 

 

For one, the fact that I’ve been stuck in one place for an absurdly long forever.

 

My leg muscles are severely cramped up…

 

 

This is worse than any of my previous gaming binges.

 

 

I should _really_ hate myself.

 

That it worked so well.

 

-

 

“Cordjet, what happens if no one ever comes?”

 

_They will assigned to a different, more fitting purpose I would imagine…_

 

“You mean you don’t know for sure?”

 

_It only seems to be me and you as of now._

 

“When do you find out?”

 

_When the transformation is complete._

 

_I will most likely end up as a soldier in Wadjet’s army, since that moment, for me, is fast approaching._

 

He looks at me side-ways.

 

_Why do you wish to know?_

 

“…I just want to know what I’m dealing with”.

 

 

I have the sneaking hunch that if nobody comes for me, Anubis will make me his bride.

 

-

 

‘Good evening, Nanami-san.

 

How is the collection effort going?’

 

 

A golden bubble had blown in on the breeze.

 

 

When I popped it, a mirror image had appeared:

 

With the Cursed God’s face inside it.

 

 

He couldn’t get through because of my wish, but he could still, evidently keep tabs on me.

 

 

“Okay my Lord…I have some possibilities picked out that I think you would like”.

 

 

‘You always were the hard worker’.

 

 

He smiles.

 

 

Over his shoulder, I can just make out a wooden wardrobe with plenty of shelving, baby pictures of Mystic, a couple of vials of blood, and a lot of flowers and candles surrounding the whole display.

 

 

That’s the shrine.

 

 

Isn’t it.

 

 

‘I look forward to seeing what you have gathered’.

 

-

 

I haven’t let my wings out in so long…

 

I keep holding on even as sweat pours down my face.

 

 

They’re done waiting.

 

 

…I guess if there was one thing that manipulation was good for.

 

It was keeping the stress levels at a bare minimum.

 

 

-I hear a clattering from somewhere down the hall.

 

 

What…?

 

 

I can’t let them loose out the door, that would end badly.

 

 

So I walk as carefully as I can to where I heard the noise.

 

 

 

All I find is a black shoe with a red stripe around the edge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Red As Blood.


	27. Neo World/New World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And then there were four.

In reality.

 

There were nine children (although children no longer).

 

 

Who had died.

 

 

The Neo World had been meant to save them.

 

Instead…

 

 

It became twisted into a nightmare that they couldn’t wake up from on their own.

 

 

However.

 

 

Sleeping peacefully within their glass pods, there would at least be one lucky soul this day.

 

Razor-sharp legs punched holes through the reinforced material within seconds.

 

 

Tearing open the translucent cover, and neatly placing it aside…

 

 

Somewhere, deep down.

 

 

She felt the harsh cracking of teeth ripping into her skin.

 

Dark fire smoldered through her veins…

 

 

Eyes fluttered open, then closed…

 

Then open, then closed again.

 

 

Black, congealed blood ran over her cheeks as the Despair contagion within her was cured.

 

Permanently.

 

*

 

The sensory stimulation of bright, fluorescent lights had her on high alert!

 

“Young Master?”

 

 

An odd pressure in her heart.

 

Looking everywhere for him, she felt a slight nudge, and then…

 

 

An unfeathering.

 

 

Eight, black, glossy appendages blitzed free from her chest with a brain-stopping jolt-

 

 

She almost fell out of the pod in her haste to get up.

 

 

“Hold on, Pekoyama-san”.

 

A careful hand-

 

 

Her shoulders tensed.

 

 

An enemy?

 

 

“Now is not a good time to test your limits.

 

We only just woke you up after all”.

 

 

 

For a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so ends the official story.
> 
> But, if you would like to see what happened to Nanami Chiaki from there, stay tuned for: 'Where The Magic Happens'.


	28. Nanami Chiaki

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *Screen flickers*

Hey,

 

Cinnamonrollseverywhere.

 

 

I heard you really liked me?

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

…

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

..

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

 

.

 

Well.

 

I like you too.

 

 

You see, it was because of you that Alice got the idea for this story, you know?

 

‘Escape the Ronpa’ had updated, and somehow I came up in the conversation-

 

 

And then you just took that to Discord…I think…

 

 

So she went and looked up some AMV’s for a refresher, right?

 

Anyway, one of them got her thinking ‘what if she actually became the Ultimate Angel?’

 

She is an AI, so she could return from the dead after all…

 

 

‘Ultimate Angel’ was born from that.

 

 

What made it even better was how excited you got every chapter.

 

You were our biggest cheerleader and she’s been waiting for this moment ever since the fiction itself was published.

 

 

 

Mm…yeah.

 

 

Thank you so much,

 

And thank you everybody for reading.

 

 

I’d love to play Tetris with you and Tyler sometime.

 

 

 

Goodbye.

 

 

 

_*Waves, and disappears in a flash of light*_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> X)

**Author's Note:**

> I just really wanted to write something with her stupefying the heck out of everybody. ;3


End file.
